Baby, kidnapped in December, dies weeks after he and his twin brother were rescued

One of the twin brothers who had been rescued from a kidnapping in Ohio has now died, the family has confirmed.

On December 19, Kyair and Kason Thomas were riding along with their mother, Wilhelmina Barnett, as she went to pick up a DoorDash order from a pizza place in Columbus, Ohio. Barnett left the boys in the idling car while she ran inside. According to reports, 24-year-old Nalah Jackson, who was in the restaurant at the time, then walked out of the restaurant and allegedly stole Barnett's car with the boys still in it.

Kyair was found abandoned at the Dayton Airport hours later, but Kason was not discovered for three days. Luckily, cops in Indianapolis happened to spot Barnett's stolen vehicle while they were taking a lunch break at a restaurant. Kason was discovered still inside the vehicle, and Jackson was soon afterward arrested and charged with two counts of kidnapping.

At the time, the family called the rescue "a miracle." "It’s going to be the best Christmas ever," said LaFonda Thomas, the boys' grandmother.

Sadly, that miracle has since turned into tragedy. Sometime on Saturday evening, Barnett was feeding the boys milk, family members claimed, when Kyair began choking. Barnett called 911 and began doing chest compressions. First responders soon arrived at her residence in Columbus and raced Kyair to the hospital.

He was pronounced dead shortly before midnight.

Officials have not confirmed the details surrounding the incident or released a cause of death. Little Kyair was just six months old.

The family is now bewildered and heartbroken by the sudden turn of events.

"I am devastated," said Wilma Booker, Barnett's aunt, who added that her niece is struggling right now, especially since many in the public blamed her when her sons were kidnapped.

"I just want people to know that [Barnett] is a really good mom," Booker stated. "She loves her babies. I don't want people to judge her like they did last time."

"She's doing really bad right now," Booker added.

Jackson, the suspect who allegedly kidnapped Barnett's boys, has had several run-ins with the law. In addition to the kidnapping charges she currently faces, she has been arrested for child endangerment in connection to an unrelated incident. She also allegedly once stole a car, crashed it, stole another car, and crashed that one. Jackson also just pled guilty to battery by bodily waste after she spit on a deputy in Marion County, Indiana, last month. Her ex-boyfriend, Dominic Davies, reportedly has full custody of the two daughters he shares with Jackson because of her repeated drug use and history of mental illness.

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